"camo" scheme on my 24mm FatBoy

I sort of think this "camo" scheme on my first 24mm FatBoy is cool. The idea was to make the "blue" rocket flames make the bird appear shorter than it really is.

Sun Yellow/Navy blue Rustoleum Painter's choice.

PS. Someday, I'm going to get one painted without at least one masking leak. This drives me crazy, and I thumbed every piece of tape at least twice, managed to get one leak.

Now, I'm waiting to fly this thing !

Looks pretty good, wouldn't worry too much about the masking leaks, sometimes no matter what you do you're just gonna get one, if you think masking leaks are bad you should try to do lettering with a paper stencil, I did on my V2 and while it looks alot better than I expected there's still plenty of visible overspray...... but that's what touchup paint pens are for.

I use something called fine line masking tape.
It's very flexible and most custom painters use it when painting flames for the edges.
The stuff I use is from 3M and blue in color,not cheap compared to regular masking tape but it will last for a long time.
I've had my roll for over a year now
Your rocket looks awesome.
This forum really rocks so much knowledge and super friendly people.
Mike

I actually started using the blue 3M stuff, trying to get close to a presentation paint job. I also probably go after it with *too* much paint at once.

Thanks for the compliments. I can't wait to see what this thing does on a D12.

for sharp edges

I use the frosted cellophane tape... less edge buildup and very clean lines ..

plus you can visually see if the tape is applied well..than I just continue the masking beyond the cellophane with regular masking tape and paper....very inexpensive

Originally posted by stymye
for sharp edges

I use the frosted cellophane tape... less edge buildup and very clean lines ..

plus you can visually see if the tape is applied well..than I just continue the masking beyond the cellophane with regular masking tape and paper....very inexpensive

Click to expand...

Without getting into details, I've had TERRIBLE results using plain paper as a masking material over already-painted surfaces. Terrible! Sticks to the previous paint (even after having dried more than a week) and gouges and tarnishes the other paint finish. Plastic wrap (like wreynold's or Glad stuff you wrap your leftover dinner with) works the best for me! Although, you have to mask your edges with masking tape, cover the large areas with the plastic wrap, and then tape the plastic wrap to the masking tape with vinyl electrical tape because the masking tape won't adhere to the cellophane (or itself, for that matter.) Sounds like a pain in the butt, I know, but it works for me.

Terrible! Sticks to the previous paint (even after having
dried more than a week) and gouges and tarnishes

Click to expand...

Forecheck

I've never experienced these problems before .and I 've painted alot of rockets using plain newspaper

when I "lightly" wrap the newspaper around the body I just tape the edges and mabey tape the seam . the technique is not to tightly twist the paper around the rocket.I can see where that might marr the finish. I just form a shroud around the rocket to keep the overspray away.

Happy to report, this thing went STRAIGHT UP on C11-3. It landed about 20ft from the pad. The rest of my launch window was pretty spectacular. Monarach on b6-4, for the second maiden flight of the day. Those 'Arch, Polaris, Guardian size birds scream off the pad.

I generally use whatever kind of tape I have on hand, I prefer masking tape, but I've also found electrical tape works ok, on electrical tape..... and really even masking tape you need to do something to reduce adhesion, if not you'll end up pulling your paint off, a little trick I've found that works for me is to cut a strip of paper about the same width and length as the tape, tape onto this strip of paper length wise, but leave about 1/8 of an inch of the tape exposed, this softens the adhesion because of the edge of the tape that remains lifted up, as for the rest of my masking I just use kitchen trash bags to cover large areas, I've used printer paper and newspaper in the past(before I got smarter) and would make a paper shroud, this works ok, but it does take alot longer and you waste both alot of paper and alot of tape, and if you're using newspaper you might just find the newsprint transfered onto your shiny new paint job, you might just end up with a "sunday funnys" rocket!

I may be a little late on this subject, but I've heard of sealing the tape edges with a bit of clear laquer or something similar. Like a clear coat. Let it dry, then paint. It will seal any open areas that rubbing the tape down may have missed.
Remember too, that our hands and fingers have oil on them and this can prevent the tape from sticking. After you paint your rocket, carefully remove the tape, you may have score the edge to seperate it from the clear coat.
Personally, I use only 3M blue tape, very low tack, and easy to work with. Sometimes I even press it against my forehead to remove more tack from the tape. I tried the sealer method once a long time ago, I think I will try it again on my Tres and get back to you on the results.

each paint coat should be fully dry .you don't have to worry about newsprint(.er..comics) ,marks ,tarnish .or any other hazzard to the finish., and obviously any tape will work ...the key is letting the paint fully dry.
not as much the tape brand or type ...I use cellophane tape for sharp lines .extreemly sticky !.so far no probs of course every one has a different finishing technique
just my 2 bits